


long distance love

by molerein



Series: on children and their healing magics [3]
Category: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms, The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Elrond is a good dad, F/M, Gen, elrond is a good brother, elrond is a good husband, he's just good idk what to tell you, it's elrond's turn for the character study, this is a little more bittersweet than the other two but it's still fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-25
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-16 06:08:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29696202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/molerein/pseuds/molerein
Summary: elrond had been a twin, once. now, he must raise twins of his own. somehow, it is not that hard.
Relationships: Celebrían/Elrond Peredhel, Elladan & Elrohir & Elrond Peredhel, Elladan & Elrond Peredhel, Elrohir & Elrond Peredhel, Elrond Peredhel & Elros Tar-Minyatur, Elrond Peredhel & Maedhros | Maitimo, Elrond Peredhel & Maglor | Makalaurë
Series: on children and their healing magics [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2177592
Comments: 2
Kudos: 21





	long distance love

elrond had been a twin, once. elder of two, a half of a whole - for the longest time, his being was split into two; he was always brother foremost. elros and elrond. elrond and elros. as children, it had seemed that the world was theirs if only they faced it together... and they did. heartbreak and terror and love, all shared between the two. when maedhros and maglor took them away, in those beginning months, they had always been the twins. identity cast away for the sake of what distance could be put between them, until eventually even that crumbled to ash.

elros was always so sure of himself. even in the darkest moments he would find reason to smile, and elrond, ever his brother's keeper, would follow gladly in his steps. even as they grew and matured, theirs was a link forged in iron, one that seemed unable to break.

but elrond had been a twin _once_. even now, ages past, he feels the absence. like something is missing, a chip in his heart that can never be found and glued back. elrond and elros they were, and now from two, there is only one, and all who could remember it ever being different are long gone. his mother and father are beyond his reach. maedhros perished, cast into flames. maglor is lost. gil-galad is dead, ripped from his grasp like the remnants of the last good dream. and evermore, he is only elrond. scholar and healer and lord, would-be high king of the noldor, yes. half-elven, yes. but only ever elrond. perhaps it is his lot to be merely half of something - always searching, never finding. a weight on his shoulders he does not know how to cast aside.

celebrian is the first day of spring after the harshest of winters. she too knows the burden of being sired by greatness, of living in your parents' shadow, where so much is expected of you. lady galadriel looks upon him and sees many ghosts; celebrian asks of him his name, and blushes prettily when he readily gives it. still, his bones ache with the thawing, and his skin burns. frostbite has been such a steady companion that he struggles to feel anything but. and yet she is ever patient with him, understanding in ways he did not expect but welcomes. they write each other of anything they can. she speaks of her parents and life in fair lorien, he of the comings and goings of imladris. in moments of solitude, he thinks that elros would have loved her. 

they wed in autumn when the leaves turn red. she has a crown of berries atop her head, radiant as the trees had been. he is garbed in blue, vilya on his finger, and though he is half of something now as well, it feels like for the first time in long ages his heart is whole. galadriel's smile is both threat and blessing; celeborn clasps him on the shoulder. the absence of his family - any of the many he had learned to call that - is jarring, but then glorfindel gives a toast, lindir sings for their union, and the ache diminishes when his wife smiles.

she is precious to him in ways he did not expect, nor foretell, regardless of his gifts. imladris has been many a thing before. it was stronghold and refuge, the last standing against the growing darkness, but now it is home. all who see her love her, but it is a love bred from respect, and he knows more than anything that he would do anything to please her. the gardens flourish under her gentle touch, and along with it so does elrond.

"you have given me a gift," he tells her one evening, unlacing strings of her silver hair from their braids as the two of them ready themselves for bed. the windows are cast wide open, and the chatter and merriment of the elves outside is pleasant, as is the breeze offsetting the summer heat. when he catches her gaze in the mirror she's smiling, demure... and then she turns in her seat, grasps both his hands in hers to bring them to her stomach.

"i have one more gift to give you," she says, and all he feels is light.

it is autumn once more when the twins are born. two wailing babes so perfect in every way that counts, and in every way that doesn't. celebrian is smiling, holding elrohir to her chest while he rocks elladan in his arms, grey eyes looking up at him curiously. for a moment, time seems to slow to a halt, and he feels his brother's presence over his shoulder. a ghost of a touch, translucent fingers brushing over the elfling's cheek, then across elrond's, as if to brush away the tears.

"elrond?" celebrian's voice pierces through the white noise, tinged with worry. he snaps back to the present with a shudder, tightens his hold on the fragile life in his grasp, and tries for a smile that is more grimace. but he _is_ happy. a lifetime of anguish culminating in this very moment, here, with his love and their loves and all of imladris celebrating.

so he settles on the bed next to his wife, tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. "a memory," he admits lowly, watching as her gaze softens in understanding. but elladan is not so keen to bask in the silence, letting out a loud wail, joined by his brother, and elrond laughs until he's crying too.

it would be unfair of him to say he does not see elros whenever he looks at the twins. they grow steadily, and when they learn to walk, there is no force in arda that can stop them. he writes letters he will never send, telling elros of hard moments and happy moments, of his hopes and fears, seals each with wax and locks it with the orders in the wooden box in his study. celebrian does not ask, though he suspects she knows, and for that he is grateful. in time, the longing lessens. he is still elrond, once twin, scholar and healer and lord, but he is husband and father as well, and he finds that the addition does not take away from all those he has loved.

when he walks outside, the sun is high in the sky. the children are being thrown in the air by glorfindel one at a time, and their laughter rings through the gardens, making every passerby stop for a moment to look on. elrohir sees him first and, breaking free from the lord's hold, barrels forward on little feet until he is near enough to grab at his father's robes. elladan follows closely, so he kneels down to let them fling themselves into his arms, gathering them close.

"ada!" elladan starts, pausing to look at his twin, who - more silent of the two - busied himself with braiding knots into elrond's hair. "we see a bird today. it was so big!"

"we saw," he corrects on instinct, waiting until his son dutifully repeats the proper sentence. the innocence and curiosity with which they perceive the world is eternally entertaining, a thousand of questions that must get an answer before the two move on to something else just as quick. and, lord that he is, he sits down right there in the dirt, listening to the twins take turns and sometimes talk over each other in the excitement of recounting their day thus far.

celebrian finds them there hours later, elrohir and elladan asleep in his lap, having exhausted themselves easily, whilst his fingers card through their hair, deep in thought.

"should we not take them to bed?" she asks him, but sits down next to him nonetheless, uncaring as ever of the dust that will surely cling to the fine fabric of her dress. elrond turns his head to press a kiss to her temple, closing his eyes as he takes in her comforting scent. she's wearing something today, floral and sweet, the smell of it making him think of the summer ripe fruit he and elros had found once during their travels. maedhros had smiled at them when they returned with their bounty, and maglor had cut them a portion each.

"they saw a bird today," he tells her instead, when comfortable silence has stretched on for long moments, catching the way early starlight reflects in her pallid hair.

"they did?" the quirk of her eyebrow is too endearing, and he simply must kiss the smile on her mouth, leaning into her embrace when her arms come to wrap around his shoulders.

"let's stay here for a moment longer," said in lieu of an answer, but more telling than anything else he could have said. she nods her head, turning to press closer into his side, and together they watch as the night sky grows darker with evening.

the moment elrohir and elladan learn that they have the ability to climb trees is the moment all peace and quiet ceases to be. an exaggeration perhaps, bred by a father's near constant worry, but they make a game out of jumping down from high branches to startle passerbies, so perhaps the sentiment is not entirely embellished altogether.

the day is beautiful, so they have left the safety of the halls to spend time in the woods near the borders, celebrian with a book, glorfindel entertaining little arwen on a blanket nearby, while he himself is content to discuss the logistics of the nearing feast with lindir. the twins, as expected, have disappeared amidst the foliage as soon as they have chosen this as their stop, but he can hear their mirth coming from above.

"ada!" elladan's voice pierces through the leaves moments before his head does so as well, the braid his mother has spent too much time on this morning askew. elrohir is nowhere to be seen, though while that might not be cause for concern, it is certainly cause for caution. "come see!"

he shares a look of bemusemed exasperation with his wife, before heaving a sigh and shedding off his heavy outer robe. lindir is happy to take it to where glorfindel is sitting, instantly being drawn into the conversation when arwen thrusts a flower into his hand.

so elrond climbs; the bark is scratchy on his palms, another memory for the taking, but then two pair of hands press against his arms, wide silver eyes gleaming at him with mischief.

"well?" he prompts, halting to a pause on a sturdier branch. admittedly, he is a little wobbly; too much time has passed since he had a reason to climb a tree, but his body has not forgotten how. the twins share a look, before moving aside so elrond can see whatever it is that they were meaning him to.

behind them, in a small hollow, two baby squirrels peeking their tiny heads out. he makes a noise between startled and awed, smiling softly when the children move to settle next to him on either side.

"look," he urges, diverting their attention to where a larger squirrel is watching them with cautious curiosity. elladan makes to jump closer, but elrond stops him with a hand on his arm. "that is their mother, my darling. she wants to see if we mean her children no harm."

elrohir is appalled at the notion, brows furrowed in confusion, "but we don't!"

the offended shout makes elrond laugh and startles the animal, who scurries closer to her young. "no, you do not. but she does not know that, and is very protective. parents are like that; babies are too little to defend themselves, so they must make sure that nothing bad happens to them."

"like you and nana do for me and elrohir and arwen!" elladan sounds very proud of his connection, so elrond bestows a kiss atop each of their heads, before urging them both to leave the animals be and climb down.

once on steady ground, arwen joins the three of them, an armful of buttercups in her grasp, smiling a smile of sunlight. even with the children distracted with the new discovery, his gaze turns once more towards the tree, where the mother squirrel goes to her babies.

"come," elros tells him, small fingers wrapped around his own small fingers, ready to drag him from his book. "come," elros tells him, now older, the pointed tip of his ear rounded to jarring softness. "come," elrohir and elladan tell him, each taking a hand, coaxing him away from his study on the newest grand adventure they have planned.

he watches them grow, watches them take to the bow and sword, watches as elrohir follows in his step, his healer's touch gentle. elrond had been a twin once, and this they know too, have spent evenings reading together through the letters written and not sent, sorrow and joy shared between them and his brother, gone but there, always.

"come," they tell him, hands outstretched and brimming with excitement as they embark on the last journey, on the ship that will take them away. and he goes. 

**Author's Note:**

> hi! I hope you enjoy this new part of this series I started completely unintentionally. as alway, I'm looking forward to hearing what you think 💖 if there is any parent & child relationship within tolkien's work that you would like me to explore, feel free to let me know below!


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